Confession

may or may not LOVE Lil Wayne. Don't judge :-)




I also love Green Monsters. I made one for breakfast today.
(1 cup spinach, 1 cup almond breeze, 2 packs of Amazing Grass, and 1 T of Twister Power):







I also had a glo-bar with my coffee on the way to work:



Lunch was leftover tofu curry from last night, as well as a grapefruit.

For dinner this evening we had veggie burgers (from Costco), raw veggies, and potato slices baked with spices and cheese on top.



These veggie burgers we bought from Costco are AMAZING. They taste JUST like a real burger, but they are made with portobello mushrooms. Even my hubby loved them!

When I was younger and lived at home, I always used to trick my mom and sister into eating veggie burgers. They would never have wanted them if they had known!! Hehe. My sister used to say how good they were, and I only told her years later that they were not the real deal.

Would your family eat a veggie burger? Tofu?





Dessert was my favourite Easter treat, a Cream Egg.



This egg will satisfy my Easter chocolate craving until next year. I can't eat them more often that that because they are just toooooooo sweet. I am sweet enough.

Okay, now you confess a SECRET/ bizarre crush?

And, what is your favourite Easter treat?

Colour

have read that the best way to ensure proper nutrition, is to eat as much colour as possible, and mostly plants.

My snack last night fits with this advice.



This morning I was up bright and early for a conference. I chugged a Green Monster before I left (3 cups spinach, 1 cup Almond Breeze, 1 T almond butter, 1 pack Amazing Grass, 1 scoop Power Twister).

I had about 3/4 of this breakfast at the conference:



Along with 150 cups of coffee.

Mid-morning I had a cookie that didn't want its picture taken.

The lunch they served at the hotel was pretty good. I had some lentil soup, a wrap, some veggies, and a mini peanut butter marshmallow dessert:





In the late afternoon I snacked on half of this bar (thanks to Jessica for sending me this!):



The hubby and I went for dinner to one of our favourite places, 13th Avenue Coffee House. It has a full menu, and all the options are fresh, healthy and delicious. I had the Jivin Jerk Bowl which had tempeh, brown rice, veggies, and a tangy jerk sauce. It also had a couple plantain chips sticking out of it :-)









No big plans for me this Friday night ... just a quiet evening in.

My snack tonight was a grapefruit, and some crackers with goat cheese:





What do you have planned for the weekend?

Don't forget to enter my STARBUCKS giveaway!!

Exciting News, Travel, and Sex in A Pan

n exactly 18 days the hubby and I will be headed to NY for a week vacation! We have never been, and I have only been to 6 states in my life (Nevada, Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, Minnesota, and Hawaii). NY has been on the top of my travel list for as long as I can remember. Other places on my list include: Egypt, India, Iceland, Samoa, Tonga, and many places in Europe.

What places are on your travel list?

On to food ...

Breakfast today was a smoothie made with 1 cup almond breeze, 1/2 banana, 1 T almond butter, 1 scoop chia seeds, Hemp/Cacao/ Maca Twister Powder, and 2 packs of Amazing Grass.





It was very protein, nutrient and antioxidant rich, and it kept me full all morning.

For lunch I ran out to Extreme Pita and got a vegetarian pita pizza:



I most definitely inhaled every last bite.

In the afternoon I had a glo-bar and a piece of cheese.

I went to the new organic grocery store in town after work today. It is my new favourite place. The customer service is exceptional. The food (including the produce) is of very high quality, and the prices are reasonable. I bought all of our groceries for the week from there. One thing I bought was organic sausage (4 large in-store made sausages for $4.49). We had the sausage for dinner tonight with rice and an avocado/ tomato salad. I topped my rice with green salsa.



I realized after your comments on yesterday's post that I cannot throw around phrases like "Sex in a Pan" and not provide a recipe. Here you go:

Sex in a Pan

Crust:
1/2 cup butter or margarine
1 cup flour
2 T sugar
1/2 cup finely chopped nuts

Filling:
250 g softened cream cheese
1 cup icing sugar
1 cup whipping cream
1 pack instant chocolate pudding
1 1/2 cups milk
1 pack instant butterscotch pudding
1 1/2 cups milk

Crust Directions:
- Melt the butter in a saucepan
- Stir in the flour, sugar, and nuts
- Press into 9x13 pan
- Bake @ 325 F for 15 minutes

Filling Directions:
- Blend cream cheese and icing sugar and spread over the crust
- Whip the cream, and then spread 1/2 on the cream cheese layer
- Mix the chocolate pudding and milk for 2 minutes and pour over the cream layer
- Mix the butterscotch pudding and milk for 2 minutes and pour over the chocolate layer
- Top with the rest of the whip cream

Chill over night. Top with shaved chocolate before serving (optional).

I have had this dessert made numerous ways, and this is the BEST in my opinion!

Very exciting news!!!!!!!
As a Featured Publisher of FoodBuzz I had the opportunity to enter a contest called 24, 24, 24. To enter, one must submit a proposal for a dining experience that they want to partake in, and want FoodBuzz to fund. Twenty-four people were chosen, and all must make their meal happen within the same 24 hour period (March 27th) and blog about it the next day (24 blog posts). I was one of the winners, and will be given the cash to make the meal/ and evening come to life.

You will have to wait and see ...

In light of my BIG trip in 18 days, I am going to do a giveaway.
See my post tomorrow for details!!

How many US States have you visited? Which ones?

Java

he hubby always has coffee ready for me in the morning. I love the smell of fresh brewed coffee. I also love the sound of the coffee machine working it's magic.

I can't leave for work in the morning without my trusty coffee cup and water bottle.



Coffee out of a regular mug just doesn't work for me, as I find that it gets cold too quickly.

The one cup in the morning is typically all I have, unless I am out for breakfast, or we have friends over to our place. Then I drink a pot ... or eight.

Breakfast this morning was a Green Monster (1 cup almond breeze, 3 cups raw spinach, 1 banana, 1 T almond butter, 1 pack Amazing Grass Wheat Grass).



For any skeptics out there, you CANNOT taste the spinach. Not even a little bit.

I also had a piece of toast:



I went out for lunch with people from work to a Thai restaurant called Angkor. I was super original and ordered the Pad Thai :-)



I devoured most of it.

Dinner this evening was some fresh salmon, roasted zucchini and mushrooms, and bruschetta with yellow, orange, and red organic tomatoes.



Colourful Bruschetta

- 3 medium tomatoes (1 orange, 1 yellow, 1 red)
- 1-2 cloves garlic (crushed)
- 1 T red wine vinegar
- 1 T olive oil
- 1 tsp basil
- sprinkle of salt and pepper
- 4 slices of French bread
- Cheese to top (I used gruyere)

Mix the first 6 ingredients and let sit at room temperature for about 30 minute or more (to let the flavours blend). Toast the bread. Top the bread with the tomato mixture and cheese, and broil until melted.

Do you drink coffee? How do you take it?

I like it black!

Kids? A BIG Giveway? Coming Soon (Enough)!

n Monday I was contacted by Jason from CSN Stores.

CSN Stores has a number of websites with great products ranging from modern decor to kids furniture and cookware. Of course, I was instantly interested in the cookware, although maybe one of these days I will be thinking more about kids furniture - *Nudge nudge, wink, wink.* (Don't get too excited - see the Q and A below!!)

Jason presented me with the opportunity to either try and review a product from one of CSN Stores' sites myself, OR do a giveaway with my readers.

I decided that I would like to let you, my lovely readers, in on the action and do a giveaway instead of a product review.

The stuff on these sites is AMAZING, and I don't need to try it out to know that!

I am very excited that on Monday I will announcing another BIG giveaway!!
You won't want to miss out!!

Now for my eats ...

Breakfast was a smoothie.

Open up!


Mmmm, chocolate smoothie goodness. This was made with 1 cup unsweetened almond breeze, 1 T almond butter, 1 pack Chocolate Amazing Grass, 1 pack Kids Chocolate Amazing Grass, 1 scoop chia seeds, 1 scoop of the power blend that Navitas Naturals gave me to try.

This smoothie kept me full all morning.

I didn't have anything to take for lunch today, so I had to pick something up. I decided that Booster Juice would be the healthiest option. I had a vegetarian Greek wrap:



And some fresh juice (4 carrots, ginger, and apple) that I just about gagged on.
Too much ginger - blech!



The hubby and I were craving breakfast for dinner this evening. We made omelets and then put them on top of toasted whole wheat bagels, topped them with cheese, and broiled them for a couple minutes. I smothered mine in Sriracha. I have a problem.



Dessert was a grapefruit with a sprinkle of stevia (thanks to NuNaturals for the stevia).



I was recently asked this question as part of my "Ask Me Anything Feature":

It seems like you have a good career and a happy marriage. Are babies the next step?

Yes, the hubby and I are happily married (nearly 6 years now!!) and we both have our careers in full swing. We own our own home, have two cars, and a landscaped yard. I'd say babies are the next step :-) But we might sneak another trip or two in first! I think 28 would be a good age to get pregnant. I would also like to try and convince some of our couple friends that they should have a baby around the same time!! None of our couple friends have kids yet!! Crazy hey!!

So, tell me about your thoughts on kids.
Do you have them? Want them? When? How many?

Busy Thursday!!

This post is going to be short and sweet because it is past my bedtime!! I have had a really busy evening, visiting my SIL in the hospital (she had her gallbladder removed!) and running errands. I had a great day at work though, and cannot believe that tomorrow is Friday already!!

Today was all about cravings. I was craving nutrients this morning.
I am weird like that.

I made a potent GREEN monster with 3 cups spinach (steamed), 1 cup almond breeze, 1 scoop chia seeds, 1 pack Amazing Grass wheat grass, 1 T almond butter, 1/2 cup Greek yogurt. It was protein rich and high in nutrients:



I also had my usual morning java:



Lunch was leftover chicken chow mein that I made last night. Someone asked if it was homemade, and yes, it was. I also had an orange and some cheese:



And I had about 6 or 7 chips with salsa at work. It is teacher's appreciation week this week, so we are loaded up with goodies!

I had b-ball game to coach after work (we are 4 and 0!!!) and only a few minutes to eat dinner after the game. We had some boxed asparagus soup:



And a grilled pear and cheese sandwich with dubliner cheese, and an Irish stout cheese:



I love adding pear or apple to grilled cheese!

After all our running around this evening I was craving protein! I had 2 scrambled eggs with Sriracha hot sauce - the world's greatest hot sauce:



I am loving the questions that are coming in on my "Ask Me Anything" feature! Keep 'em coming and I will do a couple Q and A posts this weekend!!

I am VERY excited to be going out tomorrow night to celebrate my good friend Alaina's b-day!!!
We are having dinner at a restaurant called Teppenyaki, and then going out dancing. I have another b-day party at a friend's house Saturday night.

What do you have planned for the weekend?

Fighting it Off

woke up this morning and felt the beginnings of a cold in my throat and head. I had to drag myself out of bed. I needed something to boost my immunity, so I had an immunity smoothie with a banana, TwisterPower Superfood Blend that Navitas Naturals sent me to try, some Amazing Grass, chia seeds, and Almond breeze:

It was a delicious, chocolaty elixir:

I felt okay throughout the day, but not 100%.

Lunch was leftover stew from my Irish dinner party:

As well as an orange and some cheese:

I picked up some homeopathic cold pills on the way home. They have worked for me in the past, so I am sticking with them.

Dinner was curried chicken, some brown rice with salsa, and 2 mini samosas.

Samosas are one of my most favourite foods.

Have you ever had a samosa?

I wanted some cold-busting vitamins for dessert, so I had an orange and a grapefruit:

I also had 3 of my valentine's chocolates and a mini KitKat.

I am going to bed early to try and outsmart this silly cold. You can't get me coldy, no, no, no.

What is the first thing you do when you feel a cold trying to get you!!??

I usually:

1) Go to bed early
2) Take homeopathic cold pills
3) Take vitamin C and D
4) Load up on citrus and other healthy foods
5) Gargle with salt water

I have kept 2 or 3 colds at bay already this winter with those 5 things, and have not developed a cough yet this winter (which is a first for me I think).